MANILA, Philippines, September 30, 2015 – Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company (“PLDT”) (PSE: TEL) (NYSE: PHI) announced today the formation of PLDT Capital, the newly created investment arm of the PLDT Group. Its mission is to connect the PLDT Group of Companies with leading companies in Silicon Valley and around the world.

PLDT Capital will be led by Managing Directors Winston Damarillo (Chief Strategy Officer of PLDT) and Anabelle Chua (Chief Financial Officer of PLDT). PLDT Capital expects to invest up to $50M in 2015 to support PLDT business units—which include Smart, ePLDT, Digital5 and Voyager—grow their portfolio of digital services in the Philippines, in the rest of Southeast Asia, and other developing economies of the world.

“The PLDT Group serves more than 70 million mobile and internet customers in the ASEAN region,” says Winston Damarillo, Managing Director of PLDT Capital. “In addition to investments, PLDT Capital aims to become the gateway for the most promising startups to expand their opportunities to the fast growing digital consumers in the ASEAN region.”  

The PLDT Group has recently made investments through its corporate development initiative, notably in Rocket Internet, among others. PLDT Capital is specifically created to focus on investments that support the PLDT core businesses.

“PLDT Capital serves as an important pillar to sustain our Digital Pivot,” says Manuel V. Pangilinan, Chairman of the PLDT Group. “To provide the best possible Digital Experience to our customers, we must collaborate with world class companies. We look forward to bridging the best of Silicon Valley talent with our own Filipino innovators to expand the opportunities of PLDT.”

PLDT Capital will be supported by a team of strategists, engineers, and product managers who will also be identified from the Group. PLDT Capital has formally started operations in El Segundo, within Los Angeles County, California, and has presence in Silicon Valley.